Catholic group sues Biden administration for 'blocking' traditional Memorial Day mass at national park
PETERSBURG, VIRGINIA: The Biden administration was sued for religious discrimination by a Catholic service organization after it was forced to stop from holding its longstanding Memorial Day mass at a national park.
The attorneys for the Knights of Columbus filed a motion for a temporary restraining order against the National Park Service in Petersburg, Virginia, on Tuesday, May 21, after officials refused to grant a permit for the religious service at the Poplar Grove National Cemetery.
As the Seton Route of the National Eucharistic Pilgrimage continued May 19, pilgrims traveled from New Haven, Conn., to their next stop in Bridgeport by boat. pic.twitter.com/1seO9MdCwK
— Knights of Columbus (@KofC) May 21, 2024
Knights of Columbus has been denied permit twice in a row
This is the second year in a row that the religious group has been denied a permit at the Virginia national park where they had been holding the Memorial Day mass for the past 60 years.
"The policy and the decision blocking the Knights of Columbus from continuing their long-standing religious tradition is a blatant violation of the First Amendment and the Religious Freedom Restoration Act," McGuireWoods attorney John Moran, who is suing the NPS on behalf of the Knights, said in a press release, per Fox News.
"We urge the court to grant our restraining order and allow the Knights to hold their service this Memorial Day," he added.
National park official defends the denial
An official of the national park defended the permit denial in a statement to The Washington Times.
"National Cemeteries are established as national shrines in tribute to those who have died in service to our country, and as such any special activities within the cemetery are reserved for a limited set of official commemorative activities that have a connection to military service or have a historic and commemorative significance for the particular national cemetery," Alexa Viets, superintendent of the Petersburg National Battlefield, told the Times.
Religious services and vigils have been classified as "demonstrations" since at least 1986, according to the park website, and are prohibited in national cemeteries.
"Conducting a special event or demonstration, whether spontaneous or organized, is prohibited except for official commemorative events conducted for Memorial Day, Veterans Day and other dates designated by the superintendent as having special historic and commemorative significance to a particular national cemetery. Committal services are excluded from this restriction," the rules say.
The St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Route of the National Eucharistic Pilgrimage kicked off today in New Haven, Connecticut, the birthplace of the Knights of Columbus. pic.twitter.com/iXYKxeKFEc
— Knights of Columbus (@KofC) May 19, 2024
Knights of Columbus was previously permitted to conduct religious services at the park every Memorial Day
Attorneys representing the Catholic fraternity organization said the group had been allowed to conduct a mass or prayer service at the park every Memorial Day for years up until a recent policy change.
"The National Park Service is way out of line," First Liberty senior counsel Roger Byron said in a statement. "This is the kind of unlawful discrimination and censorship RFRA and the First Amendment were enacted to prevent. Hopefully the court will grant the Knights the relief they need to keep this honorable tradition alive."
A court hearing for the temporary restraining order will take place Wednesday afternoon.
